Life with “Baby Jude”

Life with “baby Jude”… I had to use this title because I only know him as that – “baby Jude”. I’m sure we’ll end up calling him just “Jude” one day, but for now that’s his name. Probably because Brooklyn and Ella run around the house yelling “baby Juuuuude, oh baby Juuuuude, where are youuuu?!”

I figured it was time for a Jude update as I haven’t talked much about him recently.

Life with “baby Jude” has been a roller coaster of emotions. Mostly good ones of course, but having three kids, you are sure to experience almost every emotion on the daily- the good & the crazy. He started out as our easiest. I specifically remember when he was two weeks old, I turned to Trav and said- yep, definitely our easiest one yet. He was so go-with-the-flow (and still is for the most part). I think part of it ties into being left behind a lot. As the third one in line, he’s often forgotten. Not that we intentionally do it, it’s just often times impossible to entertain/take care of three kids between two parents- we’re outnumbered! (Shout out to all the single mamas- I literally DON’T know how you do it! No one deserves more praise than you!)

If you’ve followed my blog for a while, you’ll remember me talking about our journey as we walked through the struggles of Brooklyn having acid reflux as a baby. To put it lightly- it was NOT fun. I remember when I got pregnant with Jude, I prayed & prayed he wouldn’t have it. I couldn’t imagine walking through it again (it was a really dark time for me personally as well- a lot of it being tied to his issues).

The first month or so, Jude showed absolutely no signs of Acid Reflux (Brooklyn’s was immediate- I knew in the hospital that something was wrong). Around month two, I started to see a few signs. Every case is different though, so even though I know basically everything there is to know about acid reflux (tell a mom their child has an illness and she’ll end up knowing more about it than the doctors- am I right?!… just don’t google too much, your child’s illness is sure to end in death- even if it’s a common cold), it caught me off guard as his symptoms were so different than Brooklyn’s. We got him on some meds (low dose), and it seemed to help significantly in the beginning. Fast forward to around four months and things started to slowly change. There were still more good days than bad, but I started to notice he was going down hill. He was having a hard time finishing a full feeding (pulling off), and was in a significant amount of pain. It’s progressively gotten worse and I’m now having to be pretty strict about his daily routine (Acid Reflux babies do MUCH better with their feedings if they get a good amount of sleep). Our trip to D-land was a rough one for him. Nothing seemed to help (I swear he was drinking gripe water like it was his milk).

It make’s me so sad to watch him struggle and know there’s nothing I can do about it. Not sure there’s anything worse as a mom. He turns 6 months in two weeks and although I’m pretty firm on waiting until that six month mark to start solids, I just gave him some food for the first time today to see if it would help keep things down and minimize the acid reflux. And although he hated it 🙂 , I’ll probably try a few more times over the next few days to see if it will be beneficial. I’ve learned to never say never as a parent (that’s another blog post in itself!)

If you believe in prayer, please pray for healing and better days ahead! I’ve learned that seasons come and go and it can be so easy to get bogged down in the moment and think life will never change, but it will, and things will get better. If you’re in a tough season, remember that! It’s simply that- a season. This too shall pass and there are brighter days ahead!

Cheers to mommy hood! The good & the crazy. It’s all worth it!

P.S. If any of you mamas have gone through this with your baby and have any advice- feel free to shoot it my way. (Just a heads up for those who aren’t sure- Reflux is when a baby spits up an unusual amount. Acid Reflux is when a baby spits up an unusual amount {or they can be silent spitters} AND are in excruciating pain at the same time)

No two babies are the same, and I’m a new mom
So don’t know much, but I will share with you what has really worked for us and has been a LIFE CHANGER! My daughter is 3mos and exhibited a lot of the same characteristics as you described. With the help of my Mom who is a pediatric nurse and raised 5 kids, along with a ton of research, I finally found some ways to
Help ease the pain and it has changed my baby’s life and ours too ( yay!)… Three things: 1) Non-dairy diet ( literally everything I love had to be cut out, butter, cheese, ice cream, and milk. But I found great substitutes). 2) pumped breast milk in a avent bottle . Only breast feeding after 6pm. She is fuller and more satisfied when given pumped breast milk and 3) a Tsp. Of Plain Keifer poured into bottle OR given a tsp. In a syringe. Also, mommy you can drink Keifer even tho its dairy And it will go through your breast milk. Since it’s a
Probiotic it’s okay to eat even if on a non- Dairy. Probiotics are SUPER helpful for reflux babies ..

Girl! Totally feel your pain. All three had it, Lacey being the worst and having a milk protein allergy causing her not being able to gain weight. You know the best healer is time (other than God). Now they all eat like champs! Praying for you all!

Since you already have experience with reflux, I’m sure you’re doing the absolutely best you can, as well all do. My son also had acid reflux, but he had silent reflux, which was harder to diagnose since I could hear it come up, but he didn’t spit up much. That being said, I also took it into my hands and became an “expert”… So true what you say! We end up knowing more than the doctors! Anyway, I was breastfeeding at the time and read it could be caused by a sensitivity to dairy so I went dairy free. That did not help my poor little one. He continued to have reflux. In a last ditch effort, I stopped breastfeeding and began exclusively pumping. I put him on hypoallergenic formula (Similac Alimentum) as a trial for two weeks to see if it would help. Within 2 weeks, he was significantly better and by 3-4 weeks it had all resolved. I was able to take him off the reflux medication and all! Anyway, in our case, it was caused by a milk protein allergy. I was devastated to stop breastfeeding, but it was absolutely what was best for us. Good luck mama!

I’m so sorry to hear about Baby Jude… It’s the worst when our babies are hurting and we can’t seem to help them. We went through awful stomach issues with my son and ended up seeing several specialists. The most helpful was a naturopath who recommended a probiotic specifically for infants and L-glutamine powder to help heal the gut. Both have worked wonders and we notice such a difference.

My little guy had it too. I remember I would go to playdates with him, and he would spit up alll over the playmat! The other Mom’s looked horrified. I always tell myself, when we are going through something as a parent, its a phase. This too shall pass. Hang in there.

Hi! I had premature twin girls in February…I know all about reflux! At one point it was extremely bad that Zantac didn’t even work. The magic combination for me has been using dr Browns bottles and medicine called Omeprasal. Also keeping them upright for at least 30 min after they eat and both my girls have slept in either swings or rock n plays up until recently. I’m sure you know babies with reflux hate being flat on their backs!

Your story sounds exactly like mine! I did so much research until my head was spinning. I was convinced my son had a sensitivity or was allergic to dairy. However, my doctor told me that’s it’s rare and said he was probably just a fussy baby. ? After 4 months of absolute torture, lots of reflux, vomiting, sleepless nights. I took him to get an allergy test done just to put my mind at ease…. What do you know?! He is allergic to milk and eggs and a whole slew of other things. Doctor recommend hypoallergenic formula and even that didn’t work for us. I switched him to hemp milk (he was 11 months at this point), changed his diet completely, put him on a probiotic and guess what?! He immediately started sleeping through the night and is a very happy and sweet baby now. Good luck to you both!

Sending love and prayers. Our second son was born 3 months early and we found out he also had a congenital diaphragmatic hernia (cdh) where his stomach organs were in his left lung. He had surgery and spent 61 days in the NICU. Bc of his condition, he has reflux. The doctors have him on Zantac and that seems to do wonders for him. They also taught me to pace his eating. With a bottle, we hold him side ways so the milk doesn’t go so quickly in his mouth and when I breastfeed, when I feel the quick let down, I take it away at first so it doesn’t flood him again. Seems to really help him.

I don’t ever comment on blogs but I thought I’d chime in and ask if you’ve had him checked for a tongue and/or lip tie? Acid reflux and tongue and lip ties can go hand in hand. If he’s breastfeeding and doesn’t stay latched for a full feed and/feeds often (like waking every 2 hours still) it might be helpful for the pediatrician to at least check. That or a pediatric dentist. The correction is a simple outpatient procedure. Tongue ties are sometimes tough to identify but can change a baby’s eating patterns dramatically. I also have heard that chiropractic care can help with latch and acid reflux issues as well.

I am so sorry for what you are going through. Hope baby Jude grows out of it soon! I don’t have a lot of advice but know that you are not alone- my second little one was a ‘silent spitter’- his was so bad he would actually stop breathing during feedings. After a very scary experience with him turning blue, we ended up in the hospital. Meds didn’t help and we were presented the options of staying in the hospital for monitoring until he grew out of it (months) or to have a surgery called a ‘Nissen’ procedure. We chose the surgery bc there was an excellent surgeon where we were. In the surgery they essentially tied the top of the stomach around itself. The morning after surgery he woke up a whole new kid- eating great and he never looked back. Now he’s a crazy 3 year old! I’m pregnant again now with our third (our first didn’t have reflux) and am praying this one doesn’t have the same issues.

Oh I feel you! My daughter had it and would just cry and cry because she hurt so bad. Medication helped some, I ended up having I go to bottles because she was getting too much too fast when latched. I also had to keep her upright for an hour after feedings. There is a lot of positive info that probiotics can be helpful! It did seem to get better with solids! I’m a dietitian so I knew she could tolerate them developmentally at 5 months (all babies are different). Hang in there! As you know it eventually gets better!

Hang in there Mama you are doing a fantastic job. This is what worked for me: 1). NO DAIRY what so ever 2). No beans or broccoli 3). Gripe water is your friend And babies 4). Camomile tea for mama. I drank a cup in the morning and a cup at night before my littles bedtime feed. 5). Probiotic for mama. After about a couple days I saw results. Good luck Mama!! You got this!! I’ll keep Jude in my prayers!! XO

Had this issue with my both my baby boys. We had issues with stomach pain, weight loss, and projectile vomiting. My oldest son would cry for 3 hours every evening when he was a few months old. It was heartbreaking. Neither of mine could even breastfeed but we ended up using a milk free/soy free formula. It helped dramatically within a couple days. I got a prescription eventually through our pediatrician because it cost triple what normal formula does and the insurance paid for most of it! At 10 mos old I started wheening them to straight whole milk and they both did fine (thankfully) and have no allergies to milk now. But as babies they were so sensitive. Definitely worth a shot, as a mama, seeing your sweet babe in pain is the worst! Good luck girl!

My prayers are with you! It is no fun. I know your pain. My second child had it really bad and it was apparent from day one. If you can find a good chiropractor, you will see amazing results quickly. I luckily stumbled upon an article on it and figured it was worth the try. My daughter went from sleeping in half hour chunks and being miserably uncomfortable 24/7 to being reflux free and the happiest baby by the time she was two months old. She even started sleeping 6-7 hours at a time as a result, which was huge for me/us. I also did dairy free and ate a super strict diet (really clean foods, very little sugars) which I think helped as well. We also had/ still give the kids probiotics which should help too… And now we all see the chiro on a regular basis. I had no idea of all the benefits of chiro visits, especially for children! I wish you all the best and pray he is better in no time! If you have any questions, feel free to shoot me an email. Xoxo

My little boy who is now 10 months (and his sister still insists on calling him “baby” instead of using his name) suffered from silent reflux, but it took me ages to realise. He was so fussy! I had no choice but to wean him at 4 months. Over night he became a different baby, so happy and content! he loves his food. I found it was the only thing that really helped him. Hope Jude feels better soon.

Try a high quality infant probiotic (like Klairelabs). Try “baby’s only organic formula”. Less ingredients, higher quality . We know that acid reflux in infants is caused by actually having too little acid (not sufficient gut microba, enzymes and flora) and therefore the idea is so help build that bank up. I’d also give some infant digestive enzymes. I’d detox him by bathing him with bath salts and avoid antibiotics and vaccines until gut issues are resolved. Best of luck.

I’ve been through horrible acid reflux with my two babies who were both premature on top of it-neither of mine ever slept well for the first two years so I feel you! Often times it is best to see a pediatric GI specialist to get acid reflux under control and keep up your scheduled appointments. As they gain weight their meds often need to be changed either in terms of dosage or they can become “immune” to certain milder drugs like Zantac. I saw several Pediatricians before going to a pediatric GI and he was the best thing to happen to us in terms of getting the acid reflux under control. Best of luck!!! Hopefully he outgrows it soon, my daughter was 1 and my son was about 22 months when he was ready to be weaned off the meds-but every kid is different. Prayers for you!

My daughter (born 4/28/16) has/had super bad silent reflux. She never really spit up her feeds, but it was always coming back up in her throat and she would gag on it. Also a lot of crying (12+ hours a day) and screaming. The book reflux 101 helped a lot, as well as encouragement from other families who had experienced the same. Now she’s taking prevacid and carafate and uses Gerber Extensive HA formula. At about 10 weeks she started getting a lot better, but I know it’s different for all babies.

Both my kids had reflux. My 1 year old still does and she’s still on meds. Highly recommend Dr. brown bottles and burping every couple ounces. My kids got better around 6 months or when they could sit up on their own. Good luck! I know how exhausting it is but it gets better!

Oh sweet mama I just went through this/am still going through this with my 7 month old! I feel like we tried everything possible: medication, holding her upright for 20-30 minutes after each feeding, inclining the head of her crib….everything only seemed to help a little bit, but I felt so defeated and exhausted.

I did notice some slight improvement when she really began sitting up on her own, I think strengthening her muscles help her keep more down. When I began feeding her solids (we have done baby led weaning with all our kiddos), she broke out in hives twice while she was eating eggs. Long story short – we had her allergy tested and she came back allergic to eggs, wheat and dairy ?. Our pediatrician thinks this could have caused some of her reflux, or at the very least not helped.

I know that there is purpose in this struggle we’ve had with our daughter, but I know that’s hard to remember when you’re in the trenches. Praying that the Lord will grant Jude relief and your whole family peace. Faithful He has been and faithful He will be.

I don’t know where you are in the country, but upper cervical chiropractic can help SO MUCH. http://Www.thespecific.com it a good place to start and they have offices across the nation. It’s significantly different from traditional chiropractic and the results are astounding. I don’t trust my babes to anyone else! So sorry you’ve had such a rough few months. ???

I’m So sorry to hear about baby Jude! I hope he gets well soon! If you’re up for it, I would recommend trying this dr mom product. https://sprigs.life/products/babies-gripe-ease It has worked wonders, and may help in your situation. Prayers for baby jude ?

My son had this too. Changing my diet, and his, was a game changer. Unfortunately it’s a lot of trial and error until they are around 1.5 and can get an IGg blood test to find out what the foods are they shouldn’t eat. Major ones for us were dairy, soy, anything processed, and eggs. It’s so different for everyone but a lot of the time it’s what you or they are eating. So frustrating and really just plain HARD but even if you do have a lot of food limitations for him , he’ll be super healthy! And you can teach your other kiddos about his special tummy 🙂 You got this!

Completely get it! I am probably where you were a few months ago. Pregnant with our 3rd. We have 2 year old Cole (i know-great name ?) and 1 yr old “baby Connor”). Cole was hard as a baby, he had a 3 hour “witching hour” every night where he cried inconsolably due to gas pains and discomfort assiciated with milk protein allergy. He has not grown out of this yet and still takes meds to help. We dreaded that baby Connor would have the same issue, but he was much easier and tolerated diary just fine and had no witching hour. Finding myself dreading those first few months again as we are so sensitive to those signs and issues and wanting to fix it as soon as possible so our littles dont have to go through the pain. They all grow out of it – they say. Hope relief is on the horizon for you and baby Jude xxx

Out Doctor reccomended baby probiotic drops. We used BioGaia-Baby Probiotic-Drops. This got her tummy swelling to go down as well as baby Zantac and the gas drops before every feeding. Merci was sensitive to tomatoes, broccoli, and any onions at all (like even in zaxbys sauce that I would eat on my chicken). Cutting those out of my diet helped her out a whole lot. She is just about 4 now and I can still tell sensitivities to tomatoe products. One day is okay but no back to back or she will be sick feeling that night when she goes to bed. I am pregnant with my second now and am praying also that this little one doesn’t have acid reflux. It will get better eventually as I am sure you know this being your second with it. But just know you’re not in it alone!

Went through this with my son! His symptoms were the worst from 4-6 months and he improved significantly just after the 6 month mark. Like another mom posted, we had great success with similac alimentum formula because his reflux was triggered by MSPI (milk and soy protein allergy). He still needed to be on Prevacid until he was 7 months old. Also for immediate relief of a flare up try 2.5 ml of over the counter cherry Mylanta. We used CVS brand and it worked right away to calm down a screaming fest! Hang in there. His early months were some of the hardest of my life.

Have you tried essential oil therapy? Often times for more gentler babies traditional medicine can do more harm than good, you may want to look into alternative therapy. Sending much love and prayers your way❣

Oh Jude. Poor baby (and momma). My youngest, who is now three, had reflux really bad. We had him on meds for a month but it didn’t do too much. (I was actually warned by my naturopath to avoid ‘reflux’ meds when they are so small because it stops the absorption of some important nutrients.) When she told me that, we stopped immediately.
What we did to ease his pain, was quit simple: no dairy for both momma and baby, more solids (at 6-months our Noah was eating quit well), very slowwwwww feedings, and an extremely rigid routine.
In the end, it’s really a time thing. He will outgrow it, just be patient.
Thoughts and prayers with you!

I miss sure someone has already said this but probiotics were really helpful for my son. We did infant probiotics everyday too he grew out of it. Google the high end ones. Not all probiotics for babies are created equal! Also my maximized living based chiropractor adjusts my kids and has since birth. It really helped as well. praying for you and him (I know this bLog is a few weeks old!)

Hi 🙂 I am going through a similar situation with my three month old. He is spitting up so much that he is not gaining weight and therefore in the 5% for weight. The doctor put us on Similac Alimentum but I’ve been trying to find the best bottles. Do you use a bottle with baby Jude and if so what brand do you find he has the easiest time on? Thank you!!